Baseball swing line trainer

ABSTRACT

A baseball swing line trainer for learning proper baseball bat swing technique has first and second balls on a line or cord. The first ball is slidable along the cord and may be the target ball. The second ball is an alignment or position ball. When the batter executes a level swing, the target ball slides along the cord. Bat contact with the cord or the position ball indicates an improper swing.

This Application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 61/557,306 filed Nov. 8, 2011, incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Achieving a proper swing with a baseball bat can be challenging. Variousswing training devices have been proposed and used, with varying degreesof success. Some swing training devices are mechanically complex, aretoo large or heavy to be easily transported, require a helper orassistant, provide limited feedback, or have other disadvantages.Accordingly, there is a need for a better baseball swing trainer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A swing line trainer for learning proper swing technique has first andsecond balls on a line or cord. The first ball is slidable along thecord and may be the target ball. The second ball is an alignment orposition ball. When the target ball is struck with a level swing, thetarget ball slides along the cord. Bat contact with the cord or theposition ball indicates an improper swing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, the same element number indicates the same element ineach of the views.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a new swing line trainer in use.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the swing line trainer shownin FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the swing line trainer as shown in FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Turning now to the drawings, as shown in FIGS. 1-3, a swing line trainer10 includes first and second ball sliders 22 and 24 on a cord 12. Eachball slider may include a ball 26 or 30 attached to a holder 32. Theholder 32 may include or be attached to a ring 34, with the cord 12passing through the ring 34. The holder 32 may be dimensioned to holdthe ball 26 or 30 so that dimension DD in FIG. 3 from the center of theball to the bottom surface of the cord 12 is from about 3 to 5 or 6inches. The ball 26 or 30 may have a diameter similar to a standardbaseball or softball, typically in the range of 3 to 4 or 3 to 5 inches.The ball 26 or 30 may be solid as with a baseball or softball, or theball may be hollow as with a plastic whiffle ball having a pattern ofthrough holes. As described below, the ball 30 on the first ball slider22 is the target ball, while the ball 26 on the second ball slider 24 isa position ball.

The holder 32 may be provided in various ways. In the example shown inFIGS. 1-3, the holder 32 is made from cord looped through the ring 34and crimped or knotted. The looped cord may optionally have a cover,such as a shrink sleeve. The lower end of the holder 32 may extend intothe ball 30 and be knotted or crimped to retain the ball on the holder.The inside diameter of the ring 34 is substantially larger, e.g. 1.5 to2 or 3 times larger than the diameter of the cord, to allow the ballslider 22 to slide freely along the cord 12. In the example shown, thecord is a 5/16 inch bungee cord and the rings are ¾ inch OD steel snaprings or key rings.

Hooks or other end fittings 14 and 16 may be attached to the ends of thecord 12. The end of the cord may loop through fitting 14 and/or 16, toallow the length of the cord 12 between the fittings to be adjusted.Alternatively, a separate length adjusting device 28 may be provided onor with the cord 12, as shown in FIG. 3. The cord 12 may be elastic witha braided cover. Stops 18 and 20 may be attached to the cord 12 towardeach end of the cord. The stops 18 and/or 20 may be disks or washers andmay be fixed in place on the cord, or repositionable on the cord. Thetotal length of the cord 12 may vary depending on where the swing linetrainer will be used, with a typical length ranging from about 8 to 12feet. For example, a 10 foot elastic cord may be used across a 16 footgarage door opening.

As shown in FIG. 1, in use, the cord 12 may be stretched and thefittings 16 and 18 are attached to fixed structures 52 and 50, which maybe fence or goal posts, backstop posts or bars, garage door side rails,parked vehicles, etc. The cord 12 is then substantially horizontal. Thefirst and second ball sliders 22 and 24 are spaced apart. The batter 36stands with his or her back hip or back shoulder directly in front ofthe position ball 26 and swings the bat 38 at the target ball 30

The objective is to hit the target ball 30 with a level swing and withproper form, while avoiding hitting the second ball slider 24 and thecord itself. The position ball 26 provides an obstacle to improper batapproach to the target ball 30. If the batter 36 swings the bat 38 usingproper form, the bat 38 moves in the path or trajectory 40 shown indotted lines in FIG. 1. The bat 38 hits the target ball 30, with the bat38 largely aligned vertically with the ball, and with the bat 38 movinggenerally horizontally at the point of impact. When the batter executesa level swing, (using the palm up palm down technique, keeping the handsin front of the barrel, and having proper balance and weightdistribution) the target ball 30 slides forward smoothly towards thestop 18. This movement provides a visual indicator of a proper swing.

If the batter “rolls his hands” or lets the barrel get in front of hishands, the first ball slider 22 will not travel smoothly along the cord.This will also indicate when the batter is cutting across the ball. Ifthe position ball 26 is hit, the batter's swing is too wide and thebatter is not getting his/her hands through before the barrel of thebat. This indicates an “outside-in” swing, or improper transfer ofweight. Hitting the cord itself indicates an unlevel swing. The cord 12may be raised or lowered to desired height. If can be set up on an angleand lowered to teach batters to hit low pitches in the strike zone,using the same correct swing.

The spacing SS between the position ball 26 and the target ball 30 asshown in FIG. 3 determines the degree of batting accuracy needed tosuccessfully hit the target ball 30. The closer the position ball 26 isto the target ball 30, the more accuracy is needed for a correct hit.Generally, the spacing SS ranges from about 18 to 36 inches.

FIG. 1 shows the swing line trainer 10 as used by a right handed batter36. The swing line trainer 10 may of course also be used by a lefthanded batter in a mirror image position, or with the left handedbatter. The swing line trainer may be symmetrical, so that either ball26 or 30 may be the target ball. The swing line trainer may be used topractice swinging a bat for baseball or softball training, or fortraining similar swing movements in other sports.

In a basic form, the swing line trainer has only a target ball or object30 and a position ball or object 26 on a cord. Providing an elastic cord12 with end fittings makes it easier to set up, since the cord 12 isself tensioning and the end fittings can be quickly attached to fixedpoints 50 and 52. However, the swing line trainer may also be made witha non-elastic cord and without end fittings, with the ends of the cordsimply tied around and knotted onto the fixed points 50 and 52. Thestops 18 and 20 and any cord length adjuster may also be omitted. Theballs 26 and/or 30 may also be replaced with other object shapes.

Allowing both ball sliders 22 and 24 to slide on the cord providesversatility, although it is not necessary for the position ball 26 toslide, so that the second ball slider 24 may optionally be fixed inplace on the cord 12. Similarly, although the first and second ballsliders 22 and 24 appear identical in the drawings, they may also beprovided having different shapes, sizes and dimensions. The verticaldimension DD in FIG. 3 for the position ball 26 may optionally bedifferent from the dimension DD for the target ball 30. The cord 12 mayalso optionally be replaced by a tube or bar.

The swing line trainer 10 may be used indoors or outdoors. It may beused by the batter 36 alone, with no assistant or helper is required,and no additional equipment is needed. The swing line trainer 10 is alsoeasy to carry, set up and use by one person. No assembly required. Itmay reduce the need and expense of additional training equipment.

Thus, a novel swing trainer has been shown and described. Variouschanges and substitutions may of course be made without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention. The invention therefore shouldnot be limited except by the following claims and their equivalents.

1. A swing trainer comprising: a cord; a first ball slider slidablysupported on the cord, with the first ball slider including a targetball suspended below the cord; and a second ball slider supported on thecord, with the second ball slider including a position ball suspendedbelow the cord.
 2. The swing trainer of claim 1 with the cord comprisingan elastic cord.
 3. The swing trainer of claim 1 with the second ballslider slidably supported on the cord.
 4. The swing trainer of claim 1further including a first fitting on a first end of the cord forattaching the first end of the cord to a first fixed structure, and asecond fitting on a second end of the cord for attaching the second endof the cord to a second fixed structure.
 5. The swing trainer of claim 4with at least one of the first and second fittings including a cordlength adjuster.
 6. The swing trainer of claim 4 with the at least oneof the first and second fittings comprising a hook or clip.
 7. The swingtrainer of claim 1 with the center of the target ball 3 to 8 inchesbelow the cord.
 8. The swing trainer of claim 7 with the position balland the target ball suspended below the cord by substantially the samedistance.
 9. The swing trainer of claim 1 with the first and second ballsliders each including a holder having a ring, with the cord passingthrough the ring.
 10. The swing trainer of claim 1 with the cord havinga length of 8 to 15 feet.
 11. A method for batter swing trainingcomprising: suspending a target ball below a cord having a first end anda second end; suspending a position ball below the cord, with theposition ball spaced apart from the target ball by a dimension SS, andwith the position ball closer to the first end than to the second end ofthe cord; swinging a bat at the target ball; and allowing the targetball to slide along the cord toward the second end of the cord upon thebat hitting the ball with a substantially level swing.
 12. The method ofclaim 11 further including aligning the user's body with the positionball.
 13. The method of claim 11 further including stretching the cordand attaching the ends of the cord to fixed objects.
 14. The method ofclaim 11 with dimension SS ranging from 18 to 36 inches.